Something a lot of folks over 65 do that they're pretty famous for might be pushing them closer to dementia risk.
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And honestly, most everyone has enjoyed doing this daytime habit from time to time. Kicking back in a recliner, with the hum of the History Channel in the background... and catching a nice afternoon nap.
However, the seemingly wholesome activity of napping might be raising the chances of developing dementia in adults over 65, according to a new study by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, per Neuroscience News.
Of course, taking a daytime nap is a favorite pastime for many folks as they reach their golden years. Some of this might be due to lower-quality nighttime sleep as we age (and some of it is because, by age 65, you've earned the right to nap whenever you like, damn it).
That said, this study's findings have some nuance. The frequency, duration, and ease of an older person's nap routine are all factors in the possible dementia risk.
It seems that frequent elderly nappers, those who catch some daytime shuteye most every day, have a 48% higher risk of developing dementia over 10 years as opposed to those who never nap at all. Frequent nappers over 65 also have a pretty deep bench of other health issues, according to the new study. This includes risk factors like a higher BMI and depressive symptoms. And yes, according to the study, most of these folks are men.
How Older Adults Manage to Catch a Nap May Factor into Dementia Risk
However, another key factor is just how the nap comes about.
Elderly people who don't plan on napping and simply fall into catching some z's by accident show a 39% higher risk of dementia, per the study. Meanwhile, catnaps of less than half an hour also seem to be problematic, with a reported 40% higher risk of dementia.
Of course, simply chalking up daytime napping to developing dementia might be shortsighted.
"More frequent napping could be a marker of changes in the brain, rather than a cause of brain changes that lead to dementia," the study's author, Adam Spira, explained.
However, an older person's napping habits might help doctors zero in on the likelihood of a patient developing dementia.
"Monitoring napping behaviors could serve as an early and accessible marker to help identify older adults at higher risk for dementia and guide targeted interventions for dementia prevention," another author of the study, Kening Jiang, added.
Researchers hope to fine-tune their findings, helping nap lovers navigate the seemingly harmless habit as they age.
